


A Crowd of Thousands

by awritershome



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-27
Updated: 2018-04-27
Packaged: 2019-04-28 19:18:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14456007
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/awritershome/pseuds/awritershome
Summary: Just some friends at a Quidditch game.





	A Crowd of Thousands

**Author's Note:**

> The title was inspired by a song of Anastasia the musical, which I really want to see but can't. The song is adorable. And well, this had something to do with crowds? // dracomalfoyw on tumblr.

 Draco followed Harry up the stairs and wondered if he would ever get used to all the staring in crowded places like these. There was a huge contrast between the gazes directed at Harry and himself. They stared at Harry out of pure admiration, as if he was a god of some sort. Towards him was only resentment, deep frustration that burned in their eyes as if his death would make their whole life a lot better. It was to be expected, and he probably deserved it all, but that didn’t make it any easier.  
  
‘Are you keeping up Malfoy?’ Harry asked with a grin with his head turned in his direction. Draco raised an eyebrow. ‘I was about to tell you that you’re remarkably slow, actually.’ he sneered without venom. Harry grinned at him and turned his head back to where he was going.  
  
‘I have to say though, Potter, being the golden boy sure has its perks for good seats.’  
  
Harry chuckled. ‘Just like the Malfoy name used to do for you. And anyway, this was not thanks to me but to Ginny. Being the Holyhead Harpies most promising seeker gets you the best places at any game.’  
  
Draco knew he said it without trying to be mean, but it still stung.   
  
‘The tables sure have turned.’ he mumbled.  
  
Harry turned back to look at him and Draco noticed his eyes were full of guilt. ‘I’m sorry- I didn’t mean it like that. I was just reminded of the summer before fourth year. I wasn’t trying to be…’  
  
Draco held his hand up to stop him from talking. ‘I know Harry, don’t fret about it.’  
  
Harry bit his lip and nodded before turning back again and walked to their seats. Ginny wasn’t there yet, it seemed. She did have a knack of being late the last few months. Harry looked next to him and watched how Draco tried out his new Omnioculars. Draco turned to look at him while still holding the Omnioculars in front of his face and gasped. ‘Merlin, Potter. You should really do something about that nose hair of yours.’ he muttered, although a small smile played on his lips. Harry, who hadn’t seen his smile, consciously covered his nose.   
  
‘Is it that bad?’ he asked softly. His hair was bad enough as it was, he didn’t need nose hair troubles added to it. When he looked at Draco, he was surprised to find him sniggering and even snorting uncharacteristically once.   
  
‘You should have seen your face Potter. It’s hilarious.’  
  
Harry rolled his eyes, although with a smile on his face.   
  
‘Jeez Draco, and here I thought Ron had bad humour.’  
  
‘Are you comparing my fantastic jokes to Weasley’s disastrous ones?’  
  
At that moment, Ginny entered the box and sighed dramatically. ‘Still not ready to move on to first-name basis Draco?’ she asked him with a chuckle and then moved along to sit next to Harry. Draco’s pale cheeks had a pink tinge on them at being mocked but he straightened his back nonetheless and spoke up.   
  
‘Well, I-’  
  
Ginny interrupted him again. ‘I mean, even Ron calls you Draco now when you’re not around.’  
  
Harry nodded as if to confirm her words and Draco frowned. ‘Why is he talking about me when I’m not around?’ he asked her, not daring to let his discomfort show on his face. Were they still talking badly about him behind his back? Once again, it was to be expected, but he assumed that after playing chess and sometimes deliberately losing from Ron would help getting accepted somehow.  
  
Ginny grinned and for some reason Harry suddenly seemed very, very worried. He turned to Ginny with wide eyes and there seemed to be a battle going on between their eyes only, including frowns and questioning raising eyebrows and whatnot. It left Draco all the more confused.  
  
‘Harry likes to talk about you. A lot.’ Ginny told him before Harry could stop her. Draco stared at her blankly for a few seconds before his face pulled into a smirk. ‘I’m sure he does.’ he said with a chuckle. Draco looked at Harry before he continued.  
  
‘After all, during our Hogwarts years my name fell of your tongue quite often as well, didn’t it?’  
  
Harry started spluttering and Ginny wiggled her eyebrows. ‘Oh but not like-’  
  
‘Hi Ginny!’  
  
All three of them followed the sound of the voice and were greeted by a happily waving Luna. ‘And of course, hi Draco and hi Harry. Sorry I’m late. At the bottom of the stairs a whole group of people was surrounded by Wrackspurts, so I informed them about it.’  
  
Ginny smiled at her girlfriend and grabbed her hand to sit her down next to her. Luna immediately started telling Ginny about the latest discovery her father had heard from his correspondent in Africa while Ginny put an arm around her to pull her closer.  
  
‘You’re awfully quiet all of a sudden, Harry.’  
  
Draco emphasized on his name and Harry shuddered inwardly. It did strange things to his insides which he wasn’t ready to admit yet. He loved it when Draco called him by his first name. If only Ginny hadn’t been betraying him by almost spilling his secret, he might have been able to enjoy it. Harry tried to recover himself.  
  
‘Well yes. There’s an awful lot to complain about when your partner is Draco Malfoy.’   
  
Draco smiled at him, but not with his eyes. ‘If it’s that bad, you should consider changing partners, Potter. Besides, did it ever occur to you how exhausting it is to have the Golden Boy as your partner? I bet you didn’t.’  
  
Harry heard his sarcasm drip from nearly every word and grinned. ‘Exhausting how? I don’t recall us doing any physical exercise, and besides that all you have to do is write some paperwork.’  
  
‘Some things can be  _mentally_  exhausting, you idiot.’ Draco grunted, even though his cheeks were wearing a pink tinge again. ‘Now you best shut up, it’s about to start.’  
  
‘Yes, Sir.’  
  
‘Don’t call me that.’  
  
‘Yes… Lord Malfoy?’  
  
‘Stop it.’  
  
‘Yes Milord.’  
  
‘Prat.’  
  
‘You like me for it.’  
  
Draco gazed at him from the corner of his eye, thinking that he couldn’t have been more right. The game started and all four of them were immediately into the game. Or rather, all three except Luna, who was content with braiding Ginny’s hair and watching it at the same time. It was a match between Puddlemere United and Falmouth Falcons. Draco wasn’t for either team, but since Harry had been blabbing on about Oliver Wood’s skills a bit too much to his liking, he decided he’d root for Falmouth Falcons. So when they scored, Draco stood up like the other supporters did, and sat down neatly afterwards.   
  
‘Never knew you were a supporter of Falmouth Falcons.’ Harry sort-of shouted over all the noise. Draco shrugged.  
  
‘Their seeker is not bad to look at.’  
  
Harry turned his head a little too quickly. ‘You mean his appearance? Or his skills?’  
  
Draco let out a thoughtful ‘hmm’ and smiled before looking back at Harry. ‘I don’t know, how are his skills?’ he asked with feigned interest, a smile playing on his lips. Harry rolled his eyes. ‘I don’t know how I put up with your nonsense.’ he grumbled. Draco smirked. ‘Probably just as well as I do with yours. Remember that time you couldn’t stop talking about how fit Wood had become?’  
  
Harry, now completely distracted from the game, turned not only his head but his whole upper body towards Draco. ‘I was talking about his  _skills_. Not everyone watches Quidditch just for the eye candy.’  
  
Draco frowned. ‘So you’re saying he fits into the category of eye candy?’  
  
Harry frowned right back. ‘When did I ever say that?’  
  
Meanwhile, the commentator was talking about a new feature from the Quidditch games. A so-called kiss cam. Harry had seen it before, and apparently when the thing was pointed at you and someone else, you had to kiss each other. A strange concept if you asked him. He was about to discuss it with Draco, as he was ignoring him at the moment after a disastrously dramatic eyeroll, when Ginny elbowed him. She pointed at the big screen and noticed that he and Ginny were on it, surrounding a pink frame with the text ‘Kiss Cam’ and some floating hearts. Ginny grinned.   
  
‘Guess they’re still hoping for the Golden Boy and the Chaser Queen to reunite.’ she murmured.   
  
The crowd was making a lot of noise, like whistles and encouraging phrases such as ‘Go for it Potter!’ and ‘She’s not a Keeper but you should Chase after her!’. Harry looked at Draco, who stared at the screen, his hands in his lap curled in not-too-tight fists. He was visible on the big screen as well, but only half of him. Draco had noticed Harry looking at him, but he wasn’t going to look back.  
  
‘Draco.’  
  
What was he doing? Harry knew he hated public attention because of all the hate surrounding it. And now he was saying his name to grab his attention while they were seen on a huge-ass screen in front of thousands of people?  
  
‘You’re such a git, Draco.’  
  
Draco turned his head at that and was about to tell Harry where he should shove his comment when suddenly something warm was pressing against his lips and it was moving and then he and Harry were kissing in front of thousands of people. This wasn’t supposed to happen, he was supposed to forget his feelings for Harry and just be his friend but if that’s so, then why did it feel so bloody damn good? His hands found Harry’s unruly hair, Merlin he loved that hair so much. Harry gasped under his touch and it felt like they were kissing for ages when gently Ginny cleared her throat.   
  
Apparently, some of the players on the field were too distracted by the screen, that the kiss cam had been moved to another couple and was quickly shut off after that. Harry’s hand was still resting on the back of his neck when their eyes met. Draco practically swooned when Harry showed off his lopsided-grin and shrugged his shoulders helplessly.   
  
‘I was pretty sure you were going to slap me, but I had some hope that you wouldn’t because you seemed pretty jealous when I kept talking about Oliver.’  
  
Draco sucked in some air and sighed deeply. ‘Of course I was bloody jealous about that stupid Keeper of yours. You wouldn’t shut up about him at all yesterday!’  
  
Harry shrugged again and smiled innocently. ‘It was their idea actually. To see how you would react.’ Harry said, gesturing to the girls behind him who were smiling all too innocently as well.   
  
‘And this kiss- thing, too? You arranged all that just to see if I would kiss you back under huge pressure?’  
  
Harry shook his head. ‘Actually no, that was totally unexpected. I had planned to ask you out to have dinner with me at the end of the game but I guess I just thought it was worth trying.’  
  
Draco rolled his eyes. ‘You’re such a Gryffindor. Also, don’t we eat dinner together all the time?’  
  
This was true. After a few months of being partners and getting all the awkwardness and grudges out of the way, they actually became friends pretty quickly. At first, it confused them just as much as their friends, but they were all kind of relieved that they got on well. Even after seven years, most the eight years were still seeing each other regularly now. It was nice.  
  
Harry shook his head. ‘Not as a date. I was going to ask you on a proper date. I still am, actually.’  
  
‘You’re asking me right now?’ Draco asked him, his eyes slowly widening as if he still couldn’t believe it even after Harry had kissed the bloody git.  
  
‘Yes! Yes I’m asking you now. I feel like everyone is staring so just… say something.’  
  
Draco snorted. ‘You surely didn’t seem to have a problem with that when you kissed me on that screen.’  
  
‘Draco…’  
  
Draco smiled and put his hands on top of Harry’s. ‘Of course I’d love to go with you, you tosser.’  
  
This time, Harry’s eyes seemed to widen in surprise before a content smile appeared on his face. He looked down at their hands and took Draco’s left hand in his right. Their fingers intertwined naturally and when Harry’s thumb started caressing the back of his hand, Draco felt more at peace than ever, despite being surrounded by thousands of people who would rather see him gone.   
  
Harry liked him. His friends liked him too. They were the ones that truly mattered, and all he needed.


End file.
